Day 069o: The Friend in every Enemy … (June 22, 2019)
I flowed onward through the sunny day towards the township of Mourelot, with spirits high and steps light, and soon saw a highly sympathetic sign for a small donativo hostel (L’Ancre) on the near outskirts of town. I wasn’t even thirsty at the time, and yet decided to stop regardless. After all, this Walk was about spreading the message of selfless Kindness & Joy-full self-sacrifice to whomever was encountered along the way … As I approached I noticed a man strolling through the yard outside the hostel’s main entrance, and I greeted him warmly. Surprisingly, he was less then friendly towards me from the start, and then became downright aggressive as I explained what I was doing and why (?!?!?) …This shockingly acerbic gentleman (Jean-Pierre, the co-owner of the establishment, as it turned out) proceeded to angrily tell me that he didn’t believe a word of what I was saying, and implied that I was only walking for my own personal benefit. He then proceeded to give me the finger (?!?!?) and told me I could sit as long as I liked, but that I could then leave whenever I desired. Of course, my mouth literally fell open during his astoundingly aggressive tirade*, and even my most gentle of subsequent attempts to dispel him of his delusions were met with further scorn and bitterness. He did bring me a bottle of water to drink shortly thereafter, and yet it didn’t feel Right or Good to in any way enable his errant belief that I was in any way walking for myself – not even via sipping lightly from his aquiline offering. And so it was that I quietly wrote my name and contact information on a piece of paper (along with a heartfelt wish for him to somehow know imminent feelings of joy & peace), slipped the same under the bottle of water, wished him a gentle farewell, and hobbled back onto The Way …
*I found out later that evening that Jean-Pierre was regionally famous for regularly blasting passing pilgrims with verbal torrents of ridicule and unkindness.
“Love is stronger than both fear and hope – so if you can Love the natural beauty around you, the amazing gifts and skills we all possess, the fact that you are alive and able to to experience life, and choose to care for everyone around you just as they are, then there is no need to be in any way manipulated by fear or hope. You simply live the best you can and be as kind as you can be, embodying the truth of the true Love you are being, representing the stream of conscient consciousness that is ever re-experiencing itself, always knowing that you will someday return to Peace again, and flow infinitely onward as part of the ONE.” ~ inspired by Jay Woodman
;